The expectant mother smiled hesitantly into the camera. “Yes, I think so.”

“Good, then let’s get started. In front of you are 15 nannies holding 15 diaper bags. You must select the one you think holds a coupon for the Perfect Child. This coupon is redeemable at the delivery room of your choice. Marie, please make your selection.”

A trim young nanny with shiny black hair delivered the bag to the stage. She charmed the studio audience with her smile, placed the bag on the table, and made her exit.

“All right Marie, you must now open three diaper bags. Stay away from the one containing the Perfect Child coupon. Please select a bag.”

The audience began shouting out numbers. Marie turned to her husband who was seated in the crowd. “My husband says eleven, so that’s the one I want.”

The host pointed to a lovely nanny holding diaper bag number eleven. “All right, Julie, open the bag. Julie peeked into the bag, then beamed and nodded. She opened it wide for all to see. The card inside read, “Rebellious Teen.”

“That’s right. But first, maybe you’d like to have your husband join you on stage. And let’s have your mother come on up, too.”

Marie’s husband and mother ran up onto the stage, clapping and cheering. They hugged Marie and took their places behind her.

The phone rang and Tommy answered it. “Hello.” A brief pause followed. “All right.” He replaced the receiver and looked intently at Marie. “The offer is for early potty training. If you don’t accept it, you must open two more diaper bags. Marie, I must ask you, does this deal have appeal or no appeal?”

The spectators yelled. “No appeal, no appeal!”

Marie slapped a strategically placed rattle down on the table. “No appeal.”

“Okay Marie. Please make two more selections.”

Marie continued to make wise selections, while the crowd cheered her on. Finally, there were only two bags left, the one she selected, and one the only remaining nanny held.

Tommy approached her. “You had the guts to go all the way. Let’s see if you made the right choice. I’ll now open your diaper bag.”

He cautiously opened the bag. To everyone’s surprise, there was no card inside. Shocked, he looked at the nanny holding the last diaper bag, and instructed her to open it. It too, was empty.

Tommy’s jaw dropped. “ I don’t understand. There must be a Perfect Child card in one of these bags.”
Marie stepped forward. “I think I can explain. Those of us who choose to be parents know there is no Perfect Child. We decide to be parents anyway, because we want a child to love and nurture, whether that child is perfect or not. Actually, there was a perfect child born a long time ago. He is the only one the world will ever see. With His guidance, we will manage to be the best parents we know how to be.”

The audience applauded wildy.

Tommy nodded in agreement. “There you have it, folks. This deal certainly has appeal!”

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Great spin off from one of may favorite shows! I loved the ending - loved how you described your action- kept it moving along - not boring at all! And you wrapped it up with a good ending. Very nice job!:)

Wow. Talk about creative. Great way to say that we definitely need to be prepared for anything and we actually don't have control (though, as parents, we like to think we do!) Love the way you tied our Heavenly Father, as the greatest parent, in at the end. Thanks for this.

Clever and cute! I also found the rules a bit confusing - but, then again, I've never actually watched shows like that - so maybe it's normal LOL. Still, it was definitely clever! Loved the ending too!

Deal or No Deal is one of my favorite game shows. I loved how you substituted the midwife for the banker and the line about dandelions to indicate a bag 'on the right side of the board'. :) It made me picture all the times that my own kids have done that for me.

My only criticism would be about the ending. I know others have said they really loved it, but to me, it just didn't fit. You took a light hearted piece and stuck a message onto it, which can be a good way to get a point across.

The complaint comes in with the fact that you have the mom making the point. I just don't see that the person playing the game would be the right one to say they knew it was in vain. Maybe it would have been better for the midwife or Tommy to give us the message?

Although it took me a lot of words to say all that, it really is a small comment on a great entry that made me laugh. Very creative and fun. :)

This one definitely had appeal for me! This is one of my favorite shows, too and your version of it was very enjoyable! I smiled and laughed through the whole thing. Excellent. Thanks for sharing this. !